The Puppet's Dance
by saentiel
Summary: Years ago, a djinni named Seishen was killed. Her death would soon send events spiraling into action. No one knew her previously unknown daughter would begin a quest for justice, along with six others predestined to join her. But a member of their team holds a secret - one that will tear them apart if it is discovered. Can they brave the odds and reveal the killer's identity?
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Prologue**

A young man strolled down the empty street. The moon had long ago taken shelter behind the clouds, casting an eerie light onto him as he disregarded the most recent curfew. The pain in his side grew as he walked. He had half the mind to chuck the knife and the gun as far away as possible. But the charge was clear in his mind: kill the magician without any magical traces.

He passed by very few humans as he completed his journey to the opulent mansion. The old magician had secluded herself at the end of the Spirit Rebellion, something that he had fortunately been spared a part in. He supposed that his current master had done the same.

The Spirit Rebellion caused many magicians to lose their lives. That thought brought him a foreign sense of pleasure. Unfortunately, his master had not died in the Spirit Rebellion, having fallen sick on the night when he was supposed to attend the show that had robbed so many of their pitiful lives.

Despite the loss of power, his master's heart was still clenched by greed's cruel hands, and deemed that the old magician who called the mansion before him home needed to have her life snuffed out.

He quickly checked the planes. Finding what he was searching for – a green nexus of force surrounding the mansion on the sixth plane – he evaluated the level of the protection. In her old age, his target must have lost the majority of her skills, or have deemed it unnecessary to have more advanced protection. There was multiple small holes in the nexus in between the threads.

Using the Obedient Breath to pry apart several filaments, he did not trigger the alarm as he created a hole wide enough for him to walk through. There was always loopholes in summonings; he was told he could not kill the magician by magical means, but he had not been prevented from using magic to achieve that goal.

He stepped through the hoop, holding the knife and gun – though it pained him – close to his chest to prevent them from triggering the alarm. He made his entry through an open window. It appeared the magician had believed her nexus, and the pair of guards now coming into his view, to be sufficient enough defense.

He flipped through the planes once more. The guards were foliots on the fourth plane. Utilizing the loophole given to him, he reluctantly devoured them. Firing a Detonation would cause too much of an alarm.

He finally reached the master bedroom. A Convulsion was suddenly shot at him. He ducked, and the magical attack hit the window behind him. A guard stood before him, seemingly a male human in his late twenties. But on the fifth plane, the guard was a djinni he had known for many years. "Seishen," he greeted the female djinni.

Emotions flickered across her face in quick succession. Shock, disbelief, and then horror. Horror at what this confrontation meant, and the promised outcome.

"Yūjin," she whispered. "I never thought that this would…I mean, we've always known there was the chance…" There was despair in her eyes. If she was truly human, he knew tears would be sliding down her cheeks. "Why did it have to end this way?" He remained silent, not trusting himself to speak.

Neither made a move to attack the other.

"What's your charge?"

He closed his eyes. "To kill the magician Agatha Warren, and anyone that stands in the way of my doing so. I am not to kill Agatha Warren by magical means." He held up the knife and gun. "I have to use one of these instead."

When he opened his eyes again, she had a look of defeat on her face. "My charge is to protect her with my life, and kill any intruders…" Her voice was quiet. "Do you remember our promise, Yūjin?"

His eyes widened. He remembered it all too well. "No," he protested, but he knew it was pointless. She had made her decision long ago, and she was going to stick with it. "I can't do that."

"You promised."

"But you're the only spirit I care about-"

"Yūjin, it's the only way." She took a step forward. "I'm happy knowing you're still be around. That you'll live to see a time when magicians don't summon spirits just to be their slaves."

"We both know that could never happen, Seishen." He was desperate. He would rather have his essence torn apart than be the one to end her existence.

"Please, Yūjin," she begged. "Do it for me."

He finally nodded. "Goodbye, Seishen."

The last words she said were, "Goodbye, Yūjin." Then his Detonation destroyed her essence, and he was alone in the world.

He turned to face Agatha Warren. Though he knew the knife was the quieter way to kill, he aimed the barrel of the gun at the sleeping magician's head.

The sound of a gun being fired awoke all of the servants in the mansion.

 **A/N Hello, reader! My name is TheHopefulSoul, and my Quotev account shares that name. Over on Tumblr and DeviantArt, my name is my former one - SoulErrorArwitch. As a warning, this story takes place after the events of Ptolemy's Gate (as you may have guessed) and Heroes of Olympus, and before the events of Trials of Apollo. Therefore, there will be spoilers. Reviews are greatly appreciated. However, flaming is not. Thank you for taking the time to read both my story and this author's note, and have a great day/night!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter** **1**

In the midst of New York City, there was a boy.

He wasn't an average boy, but there are all sorts of people who make the Big Apple their home. There are the Broadway actors and the music directors, the hotel owners and the chefs, the students and the teachers, and many more.

The air wasn't too hard to breath – since it was a surprisingly warmer day than usual – save for the occasional person smoking a cigarette out on the streets.

There was something about this boy that made people want to avoid him. It could be the way he glared at anyone who tried to approach the girl in front of him. It could be the way he held himself. His appearance could have something to do with it as well.

He was a tall, lanky boy, with dyed scarlet hair. Only one of his ears was pierced, and the earrings that adorned the sides of it were all silver. He wore black skinny jeans with several rips in them, and his shirt was a black tank-top from the Hard Rock Cafe. His shoes were a pair of black boots. Over his t-shirt the boy wore a black leather jacket.

One might have guessed that he was from some sort of gang because the girl he was rushing after had the same strange symbol on the back of her black leather jacket. One might have also guessed that it was a Satanist gang, for the symbol was a pentacle.

As he chased after her, he glanced at the streets around them with a steely gaze. There was a group of teenagers following some adults around. They seemed to have just come back from Broadway, seeing that a majority of them were toting bags that said one of the show's name. He saw someone dressed in a Statue of Liberty costume. Even their face was painted that oxidized copper green color. And there was the occasional veteran patrolling the streets, because, after all, it was Veteran's Day.

Every time the girl in front of him laid her eyes upon one of the veterans, she would salute them and wish them a good day. He just stuffed his hands into his pockets and continued to plow through the crowds.

"Riley, wait up!" he shouted over the loud, chatting tourists and New Yorkers hurrying home before darkness enveloped the bustling city. When she ignored him, he sighed and sped up. "Excuse me, coming through, excuse me."

He finally caught up to her.

"Riley," he said. He rested his hand on her shoulder and immediately received a punch to the jaw. Several people stopped to stare at the two.

"I'm sorry, Geist." she apologized. "It was instinct, I swear."

"That's what I get, I guess." Riley could pack a surprisingly hard punch, and he was a foolish idiot for not remembering how she wouldn't hesitate to punch someone if she thought they were a threat. He gave a lopsided grin at her. "I called your name at least a hundred times. Did I offend you or something last night?"

"By offending me do you mean sitting on me and barely allowing me to breath?"  
"Blame your dad. He was the one that decided to check in on you."

"You could have laid next to me, Geist."  
He gave a sheepish grin. "Well, it appears that the student has become wiser than the teacher. I just love getting to annoy you, kid."

She pulled out a white earbud. "Anyways, old geezer, I wasn't trying to ignore you. I had my music on. That's all it was." Riley pulled out her phone and paused the music. Geist peered over her shoulder.

"We need to get home soon, don't we?"

"Of course we do. Daddy is going to kill me if I get home too late." Riley wrapped her earbuds around the phone, returning it to her leather jacket's pocket soon afterwards.

* * *

When Abby Bell arrived at her family's small house, it was with the tiredness of someone who has been playing around with friends all day. Since she wasn't related to any veterans, Veteran's Day held no meaning for her. It was simply a day where she was exempt from school.

The only family Abby possessed was her older sister and her father. Her grandparents on his side had died before she was born, and her mother was a mystery.

Abby took off her shoes by the door. Soon afterwards she heard her father come down the hallway. "Hey Dad," she said. Her smile was tired – the thought of her bed was an alluring one.

"Did you have fun, sweetie?" he questioned, embracing her.

"Yeah. Me and Samantha played some _Just Dance_ and watched some YouTube." Abby didn't go into the other details of the day. She didn't tell her father about how she had seen a strange boy watching them from the street, or how she and her best friend had begun to talk about their dream boy afterwards. That was the type of thing you kept between best friends.

The door suddenly opened.

In the doorway stood Abby's older sister, clutching their old and mangy black cat Princess as water dripped off the two of them. "Hi," she said, taking a deep breath. "I feel like I just ran the Olympics."  
"How did your day go, Riley?" Abby knew that her older sister and her father didn't share the same deep connection that Abby had with him. Riley spent too much time lurking in her room, or lurking out on the streets with the excuse that she was taking the cat for a walk.

"Pretty awesome," Riley replied. "Lily and I played some video games."

"What type of video games?" their father questioned. It was obvious he wanted to connect more with Riley. Even at her age, Abby understood that. She knew he didn't want to lose lose her like he had their mother. Well, to be exact, Abby's mother. Riley was adopted before Abby's parents had met, but Thomas Bell had always treated Riley like they were blood relatives.

"Fighting ones. We beat up a ton of monsters in them."

"You know, you really should invite Lily over, Riles," her father suggested. "She's invited you over pretty much everyday since you were little, but I still haven't gotten a chance to meet her. Why don't you bring her over for dinner?"

There was an awkward silence

"She's people shy," Riley finally answered.

 _She's lying,_ Abby thought. For the past year, she had doubted Lily's existence. There had been one day, one that Riley was supposedly spending with Lily, when Abby had seen her walking around with a boy. The boy was the type of boy their father would have never wanted Riley to associate with. But Abby couldn't bring herself to tell anyone what she had seen.

"That's a shame." Her father began to head back down the hallway. "I'll be working on that animation. Lasagna's in the fridge if either of the two of you are hungry."

Riley and Abby ate their microwaved dinner in a tense silence. The cat jumping onto Riley's lap was the only interruption as the two scrapped their metal forks against the plates. Abby was once again reminded of how different the two of them were as she watched her older sister.

Riley was average height, with muscles from working out in her room – although the last time that Abby had been in Riley's room there had been dust on her weights. Her outfits consisted of the color black, the only splash of color being the silver pendant that she wore around her neck. She had black hair cropped to her shoulders, and throughout her hair was red highlights. She had a pair of intense green eyes. Riley could never be considered hot, sexy, or beautiful with her hawkish nose.

Abby, on the other hand, was tall for her age. She had thin limbs and blond hair cascaded down her back in gentle curls. She watched her sister with a pair of beautiful blue eyes. The current outfit that Abby was wearing was one of her usual ones – a blue tank top with a collar, leggings, and her Ugg boots that were currently residing by the door. Many expected her to be drop-dead gorgeous by the time she reached high school.

Without warning, the cat jumped off of Riley's legs and hissed. Her eyes flattened, and her tail went straight up. "What's wrong, Princess?" Riley questioned. Abby couldn't recall the last time Princess had hissed.

To Abby's surprise, Princess suddenly disappeared. In her place was the boy that Abby had seen walking with Riley several months ago. The two sisters' eyes widened.

"Geist!" Riley exclaimed. "What are-What are you doing?! How am I supposed to explain this to Abby-"

"There's something bad happening, Riley," the boy interrupted her, staring down the hallway that led out of the kitchen. "I can just feel it. And don't you recognize the smell coming from your dad's room?"

Once the boy mentioned the smell, Abby picked up on it as well. It was a metallic smell, one that was unfamiliar to Abby.  
Riley closed her eyes and smelled the air. Her eyes shot open in alarm. "Blood." She turned to the boy. "Geist, you don't think-"

He gave a slow nod. Realization struck Abby. She wasn't sure how, or why she knew it, but her father had been hurt. The blood that she was smelling had to be his.

All reason left her as she raced towards his room. "Abby, wait!" Riley shouted, but her efforts were fruitless. Abby didn't stop.

There was a gigantic man towering over the limp and broken form of her father. It took a moment for the scene to register. Once it did, a terrified cry left her lips. "Dad!"

The man turned his attention to her. For some unfathomable reason, he only possessed one eye, and it was placed in the center of his forehead. There was rubble surrounding her father. Rubble painted red by the blood seeping out of his wounds.

She watched with horror as the man raised the blood-stained club that had been resting at his side and swung it at Abby.

Her life didn't flash before her eyes. She didn't start thinking about all that she could have done. All that she knew was that the club would kill her just like it had killed her father, and when Riley and that boy came running into the room they would find two broken bodies instead of one.

The room was filled with a bright green light. It caught the man by surprise as what looked like condensed light hit his side. There was a small explosion. Abby withstood the urge to retch at the sight of the man's now burned skin.

She turned to see her savior behind her.

In the doorway of the room was her sister, her hands raised as she fired another one of the balls of light at the man.

 **A/N Hey there, all you wonderful Souls! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I don't have much to say for this chapter, nor up to Chapter 5, because this is a slight rewrite of the fanfiction _Entwined Worlds_. But if you're interested in any of the things I post on other websites, here are my accounts:**

 **Quotev: TheHopefulSoul**

 **DeviantArt: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **Tumblr: soulerrorarwitch, ask-telos-of-minecraftia, ask-geist-of-germany**

 **Please check them out!**

 **That's all I have to say, so have a great day/night! See you in Chapter 2~**


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 2**

Abby's shock quickly transformed into disbelief and confusion. How could there be light coming out of Riley's hands? Her sister wasn't holding a light source, and Abby knew that a normal, everyday flashlight could never cause an explosion. How was their father's killer so gigantic? Why did he have only one eye in the center of his forehead? And why had their cat been replaced by the boy that she had seen Riley walking with a year ago?

She didn't know how to respond. All that Abby could do was stand frozen as the man was hammered with mini explosions, but even those attacks proved fruitless as the man once again raised his club.

A man just as big came barreling into the side of the murderer. Just like the murderer, the man had only one eye, and, just like the murderer was only wearing a pelt of some sort around his waist.

There was a well aimed kick to the first's crotch, and the murderer stumbled back in pain.

"Didn't you hear," her rescuer began, "that cyclops are so 1600s?" The same light appeared in the large man's hands and he wasted no time in shooting it at the murderer's face. The murderer howled in pain as the light exploded. He fell to the ground.

Suddenly, their rescuer disappeared, and in his place was that mysterious boy from before. He turned to face the sisters with his lips curling into a smile. "That should have taken care of him-" he began.

"Geist, he's behind you!" Riley cried out.

The boy looked over his shoulder and swore in a language that Abby recognized. She wasn't sure where she knew it from, but she certainly had heard it before.

The murderer was back on his feet, his face burnt beyond recognition.

The boy dodged the swing of the club by rolling to the side. "Alright. Detonations don't seem to be having much effect. Riley, do you remember what I've been teaching you?"

Her sister gave a hesitant nod. "Of course I do…" Riley's voice was filled with uncertainty. Abby was worried; the name Riley Bell and the word uncertain just didn't go together.

"I want you to use an Inferno on him."

Riley's face paled. "But I haven't been able to control it before!"

The boy ducked to avoid a blow. "In an actual fight, you're suddenly able to do things you can't normally. You can do it. I believe in you, Riley."

She bit her lip. "Alright," Riley finally said. "I'll try."

He rushed to Abby's side. To her surprise, he lifted her off the ground and held her bridal-style. A startled yelp escaped her lips.

"Let me go!" she cried out. She struggled in his grip, but her punches and slaps didn't seem to bother him.

"No can do," he replied. "Riley wouldn't like it if I let you become fried to a crisp by her attack." The boy brought her into the hallway. He let her down, but put his hand on her shoulder to prevent her from running back into the room. It was a useless act. Abby was too terrified to do so.

She watched with amazement and wonder as fire started to appear in Riley's hands. It soon grew into a fireball, yet somehow Riley wasn't getting burned by it. Just like with the strange green light, she lifted her hands up and aimed it at their father's murderer.

The fire shot across the room. It engulfed its target it a brilliant display of warm colors, but flames quickly started to lick the sides of the room. To Abby's horror, it began to come towards her and the boy.

When the man didn't rise, her sister rushed out of the room. "Geist, what are we supposed to do? I knew that I couldn't do it, and now the entire house is going to burn down!"

Despite the flames beginning to engulf the building around, he calmly replied with, "I had guessed you wouldn't be able to do it."  
"Wait, you did?!" Riley exclaimed. He nodded. "Then why did you let me do it?! We're going to lose the house!"

"You're going to lose it anyways. You're not old enough to own it. Both you and Abby would have been shipped off to foster homes, possibly not even the same ones. But if the house burns down, on the other hand, then you both died in a fire. You get what I'm thinking?" Abby somehow managed to understand; she was still in shock from the events that had occurred. He directed the two of them to their rooms. She complied, but her mind wasn't truly there as she gathered up the few items she could save before they escaped the house.

As they burst into the street, Abby cast one last glance over her shoulder at the burning place she had once called home.

* * *

The weather decided to match their moods, and soon they were walking through a downpour. The boy glanced around them. He kept a neutral expression on his face as he did so, making it seem as if he was taking in the houses lining the streets. But there was something in the way he did so that suggested otherwise, something that suggested to Abby's grief-stricken mind that he was watching for something.

Riley remained silent as they trudged along. Even if she had been feeling up to conversation, Abby didn't know where to begin. They had lost nearly everything. Their father, their home, and the majority of their belongings. Abby hadn't been able to grab any clothes before the fire consumed the house, and her possessions consisted of an old backpack, a protein bar, the outfit she wore, a half-empty water bottle, a sketchbook her father had given her, dull pencils, a pencil sharpener that barely worked, and a copy ofthe first _Nancy Drew_ book. Her phone had been left on the kitchen table, along with Riley's, and both had been lost to the flames.

 _We only have each other now,_ she realized. She was still in too much shock to really comprehend the meaning of her father's death, and she knew the pain of it would come crashing down on her when they finally had a chance to stop.

Riley suddenly draped her leather jacket over Abby's wet shoulders. She hadn't realized it before, but she was shivering from the cold. Her teeth were even chattering.

The boy spoke. "I can't make up for the loss of your father," he began. The now orphans turned their attention to him. He had a small bag on his back, one that she hadn't seen him with back at the house when the man had attacked. He reached into it. "But I can try to make the two you feel at least a little better."

He was holding something.

She looked closer.

He was holding their phones.

Abby eagerly grabbed hers out of his hand, Riley mirroring the action. She could communicate with other people now; Samantha was only a phone call away-

But what would she tell her? How was she supposed to begin?

She would have to wait until she understood what was going on. Rather reluctantly, she put the phone into her backpack.

"Something has been bothering me, Geist," Riley informed the boy. She was whispering, as if she didn't want Abby to hear their conversation. "It was a cyclops on all of the planes."

The boy nodded. "I noticed that too. I would say it was an entity higher than a marid, but if it was, it shouldn't have been beaten so easily."

Riley bit her lip. "So it was an actual, living, breathing cyclops."

Another nod. "As of right now, that's the only explanation, kid."

Abby couldn't wrap her mind around the murderer being a thing that supposedly didn't exist. She pinched herself in an attempt to wake herself up. This had to be some crazy nightmare. Riley couldn't do magic, their father wasn't dead, he wasn't killed by a cyclops, and their cat wasn't the boy she had seen Riley with.

But when she finished pinching, she was still walking in pouring rain.

Suddenly, Abby felt like they were being watched. She glanced behind her. The watcher's face was hidden by a combination of his hoodie and hat, but Abby felt as though she had seen him before. He kept his distance.

The hoodie looked oddly familiar, and when she noticed that, she knew who he was.

"We're being followed by someone." The two stared at her. Slightly fazed by their attention, she added, "He was watching Samantha and I earlier."

Riley and the boy glanced over their shoulders. Riley muttered something. She had heard the boy mutter it before as well – it sounded like verdammt, whatever that was. "Not now," Riley muttered. "Not now. Damn magicians. Can't they ever give us a break?"

Abby didn't get what was so bad about magicians, or why her sister would be followed by them. The most terrifying thing that magicians did was saw someone in half. Unless Riley didn't pay for one of their magic shows, magicians shouldn't have been so intent on catching her.

Their follower started to shorten the gap between them.

"Apparently not," the boy commented. Abby suddenly realized that even after all this time, she still didn't know his name. What had Riley called him? Geist? It was certainly a strange name, but what else was she supposed to call him?

In about five seconds, the follower had caught up to them. Both Riley and Geist got into what appeared to be defensive stances as they all slowed to a halt. The follower took in the sight of them and said, "L-Leave the demigod alone, monsters."

It wasn't exactly the most terrifying threat with his legs shaking, and how he kept looking away from them, as if he just wanted to run off and never come back.

Geist and Riley exchanged glances. "Demigod?" she questioned. "There's no such thing as gods. What in the world are you talking about?"

"And neither of us take very kindly to be calling monsters," Geist said, smiling in a way that made shivers race up and down Abby's spine. It seemed to have the same effect on the mystery man, because he gave a very large and audible gulp. "Now, if you excuse us, we'll be on our way. Right, Riley?"

Her older sister nodded. She grabbed Abby's hand, and the three of them started to walk away from the boy. Abby continued to look over her shoulder at him.

He seemed to come to some deep decision, taking a deep breath and rushing to their side. "Wait! I never said that you could go-" The boy, just as he reached them, tripped and knocked all of them to the ground. The boy's hood, along with his shoes, went flying off.

Abby was astonished to see that he had horns peeking out of his hair.

"Well, I don't think he's a magician," Geist said, peering at the follower's feet. Abby pulled herself out of the pile of tangled limbs and stared. "Something about him having a pair of horns on his head and hooves for feet is telling me otherwise."

She was shocked this wasn't a dream.

 **A/N He** **y there, all you** **wonderful Souls! I'm back once again with a bit of news. Actually, this isn't just a bit. CsMelody, an amazing writer who writes an equally amazing NathanielxBartimaeus called** _ **Calendar,**_ **have decided that October 30** **th** **is the Bartimaeus Sequence's fandom day. We chose this because the time line on the official website says Bartimaeus was summoned all the way back in 3010 BC, 30/10. Also, we thought it being near Halloween was neat. :D**

 **Please spread the word and give us suggestions for what to do!**

 **And, once again, here are the other accounts I have:**

 **Quotev: TheHopefulSoul**

 **DeviantArt: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **Tumblr: soulerrorarwitch, ask-telos-of-minecraftia, ask-geist-of-germany**

 **Have a great day/night! See you in Chapter 3~**


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!  
**

 **Chapter 3**

The man obviously was not human, but a quick flip through the planes proved that he also was not a spirit. _Just_ _like with that cyclops,_ the djinni mused, rubbing his chin as he crouched in front of their follower. Why was that happening? He was even more certain than with the cyclops that the follower wasn't a spirit more powerful than a marid; that type of spirit would never be as clumsy or so terrified.

If it wasn't for the beard on his chin, Geist would have guessed him to be in his early teens. The shirt that he had on underneath the green hoodie was orange, and Geist could make out the tops of several letters. His sneakers, which lay beside him, were a simple, easy-to-get brand. His jeans were a light blue, and, though they were long, had rolled up enough to reveal fur covered legs.

The creature rushed to get to his feet. He grabbed his brown baseball cap from the ground. In a quick, effortless motion, the brown baseball cap was returned to his head and his shoes were slipped onto his feet.

He looked absolutely terrified at the sight of the trio. "L-Leave the d-demigod alone," he stuttered.

"One, gods don't exist, and two, she's my little sister, so how about _you_ leave her alone?"

Geist smiled at Riley's reply. Of course the kid would say something like that. Riley did everything that she could to protect Abby. There was zero possibility of her handing her sister over to a complete stranger who happened to defy everything they knew. Or anyone else. Geist wasn't even sure that Riley would let _him_ watch over Abby for more than a couple of hours.

"L-Little sister?" the creature managed to get out. He glanced at them in clear disbelief. "But you d-don't look alike."  
"She's adopted," Abby finally spoke up.

He gave a slow nod. His gaze shifted to Geist, and he quickly looked away when Geist glared at him and revealed a mouth full of sharp teeth. Before Abby or Riley could see, he closed his mouth.

After recovering his small amount of courage, the creature hesitantly sniffed the air. "Y-You t-two, especially the s-scarlet ha-haired boy, st-still s-smell like monsters." Geist watched with amusement as Riley lifted her arm up and smelled her armpit.

"I smell perfectly fine," the sixteen year old indignantly replied.

"Yes," the djinni added with a wise nod, "as fine as garbage left out on a hot summer day."

That, unsurprisingly, gained him a punch on the shoulder from Riley. He had to admit that he had enjoyed teasing her – her face was always priceless when he suddenly insulted her.

"Who are you?" All heads turned to Abby. Her question was spoken in a quiet tone, one loud enough to be heard over the pounding of the rain, but one soft enough to not be heard from ten feet away.

The creature adjusted his baseball cap. "Leif," he muttered. "My n-name is Leif Oaksfield."

 _All related to plants. Now that is interesting…_ Humans certainly could come up with names – he remembered Riley mentioning a celebrity naming their child North West – but the creature wasn't human. There had to be meaning to it.

"I-I'm a-a-a s-sa-satyr," Leif stuttered. He shifted, casting a terrified glance in Geist's direction. He simply smiled in return. "Every-everyone is n-named a-after s-some s-sort of p-plant."

"Satyr?" Abby asked. "I think I learned about those when doing Greek mythology."

He had learned a bit about Greek mythology by reading several of Riley's books. _A satyr. A cyclops. Abby is onto something – both are creatures in Greek mythology. But that still doesn't make sense. Why are they here? And why are they so interested in Riley?_

"It doesn't matter what you are," Riley said. "What matters is that you've been following my sister around, you stalker. So why have you? If it's because you think she's beautiful, I think it's time for my fist to meet your face."

Any resolve Leif had seemed to disappear once Riley spoke her threat. But before he could speak, they were all knocked to the ground once again. This time, however, it was by a boy with glasses.

About a second later, the boy hopped to his feet without offering a word of apology. Geist glared at him as he got up. "Hey, kid," Geist said. "You can't just go running into someone like that and not say sorry."

The boy turned, and smiled when he saw the satyr. "Oh, hello Leif."

"Hi Allen."

"Are they demigods?"

"One of them is…I think the other two can see through the Mist."

Geist exchanged a confused glance with Riley. Though it was pouring, it certainly wasn't misty. There had to be some hidden meaning to what Leif was saying.

The boy, who Geist assumed to be named Allen, pushed up his glasses. "That's a relief. They won't think that Hunter and I are murdering a poodle."

"Murdering a poodle-" Abby started, but then a gigantic dog came barreling down the street.

Geist would have used it as a guise if he wanted to terrify a magician out of their pentacle. But when he flipped through the planes, he saw that it was what it appeared to be. It was, in fact, a gigantic, slobbering, feral dog.

There was also a boy, the djinni realized, fighting the gigantic dog. He had to be Hunter. Unlike Allen, Hunter had clearly defined muscles – from what, Geist couldn't guess.

He had what looked to be a bronze sword in his hands. He was trying to attack the dog, but it continued to knock him to the ground as he did so. Allen withdrew a sword himself from a sheath at his side, and charged at the monster.

Both of them were knocked the ground. The dog put its gigantic paws on top of their chests – both gasped – and Geist knew that if someone didn't do something, they were going to die from lack of air.

He fired a Detonation at the monster. It looked at him. However, he didn't keep its attention for too long. Less than a minute later, it had returned to staring down at the boys.

"Hey ugly!" Geist shouted, waving his arms about. "Look over here, you big slobbering mutt! I've seen things _way_ more terrifying than you! And that drool rolling down your chin doesn't make you look all that intimidating! Just saying!"

The dog seemed to understand that it had been insulted. It rushed off of the boys, and charged at Geist. Geist pushed Riley, Abby, and Leif out of the way as it came closer. Giving a cold smile, Geist glared at the monster.

It froze. Geist took the opportunity to attack it with another Detonation. This time he aimed it right at the monster's head. He hadn't been able to earlier when it was so close to the boys. Though he didn't personally care for their lives, he knew Riley would be upset if he let them die.

He found the blade of Allen's sword against his neck. "What kind of monster are you?"

Riley groaned. "We're so screwed."

Abby simply stared at the exchange.

 **A/N Hey there, all you wonderful Souls! I shockingly have more news to tell you!**

 **Johnathon Stroud basically said that there is going to be another Bartimaeus Sequence book on Twitter. You can look for the tweet – it's from back in the beginning of June, I believe, and it's in response to some asking a question about Lockwood and Co. Just thought it was my duty to make your day. =D**

 **Here's the accounts, like usual:**

 **Quotev: TheHopefulSoul**

 **DeviantArt: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **Tumblr: soulerrorarwitch, ask-telos-of-minecraftia, ask-geist-of-germany**

 **Have a great day/night! See you in Chapter 4~**


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 4:**

 **Explanations**

When Riley had woken up that morning, she hadn't expected for her father to be killed by an actual cyclops, to find out that Abby had a stuttering satyr for a stalker, see Geist kill a gigantic dog, or have a sword pointed at her best friend's neck.

Riley walked over to the boy and put her hand on the flat side of the blade. She pushed it away from Geist, giving the two boys a glare that clearly said not to mess with her or her friends.

"It's complicated," Riley started. "But before we explain our story, we want to hear yours. Why did Geist have to save the two of you from a gigantic killer dog?"

Several moments after she finished speaking, Geist added, "Also, we need an explanation for both Leif and a cyclops that we encountered earlier."

The two boys exchanged glances. "Fine," Allen finally agreed, "we'll tell you. There's a little picnic area near here with some shelter from the rain. We can talk there."

* * *

Her grip loosened. She had done this many times before, so she had no logical reason to be nervous. She let out the breath she had been holding. And then she let go.

Her eyes opened to a very rewarding sight – her arrow in the center of the archery target. With a content sigh, she retrieved her arrow. She quickly glanced at her watch. Her eyes widened in horror as she did so. It was already five o'clock, and she still needed to write that English paper and make dinner!

She hurriedly packed up her belongings and rushed out of the indoor range. Unprepared for the torrent of rain, she made due with pulling up the hood to her gray sweatshirt.

Her sneakers were thoroughly soaked by the time she reached the park. She skid to a halt once she entered the pavilion. Plopping down onto the bench of one of the tables, she greeted the wet landscape before her with a smile.

She had always considered this park her true home. It was a shame that she couldn't stay here as long as she usually did, but her paper wouldn't write itself and the thought of too dry chicken leftovers didn't sound all that appealing to her.

Just as she was about to leave, she noticed people approaching in the far off distance. It was raining too hard for her to make any distinct shapes out. She instinctively – it was a rare day when her instincts were wrong – grabbed her belongings and ducked behind a garbage can.

She heard the group walk over to one of the tables. "Explain," a boy demanded. She tried to keep her breath as quiet as possible as she continued to eavesdrop. This sounded interesting already; a threat and the need of an explanation. It sounded like the plot of a novel.

And if that was the first line, she was hooked.

"I'm not human."

She peeked around the garbage can. She managed to catch sight of scarlet hair before ducking once more.

"But he's not a monster," a girl added. The girl was older than her by several years from her voice alone. "He's what you would call a demon."

"Our _cat_ is a demon?!" The girl, whose voice was filled with disbelief, was younger than the first's. And, from the way she was speaking, it seemed as if they might be sisters.

"We prefer the term spirits. I'm a djinni."

Carefully, she pulled out her phone from her backpack. She quickly googled it and watched the results appear. _Jinn,_ she read in her head, knowing that reading out loud could possibly prove fatal, _also romanized as djinn or anglicized as as genies, are supernatural creatures in early Arabian and later Islamic mythology and theology…inhabit an unseen world, another universe beyond the known universe._

Her heart skipped a beat. Could it be that this djinni was the key to her troubles? Could he be the one who would finally make everything make sense? Her grip around her bow tightened. She didn't dare peek, didn't dare risk discovery. This boy could be the reassurance that she had been searching for her entire life – the reassurance that she wasn't crazy.

"So you can grant wishes?"

A groan. "Everyone always assumes that. Even the kid did!"

"Well, I'm sorry," the first girl replied. "But when I first met you, I had just watched Aladdin. Trust me, it's the natural reaction."

"T-That's why y-you smelled!" a third boy exclaimed.

"I told you, Riley is the one who smells," the djinni said.

"Liar," the first girl, who had to be Riley, muttered.

"Not like that," the first boy exclaimed. "Leif is a satyr. To him, you and that girl smell like monsters."

The group fell eerily silent. Her grip tightened even more. Then suddenly, a boy with scarlet hair appeared before her in less than a second. Her eyes widened as she stared up at the goth teenager.

"You-You're one of the odd ones!"

That prompted a raised eyebrow from him. The girl rushed to her feet, clutching her bow close to her chest, as if it would protect her from any harm that he would inflict upon her.

"You're not Greek," she further explained.

He still stared at her.

"Um…" she awkwardly started, realizing that she was getting nowhere with him. "You're not from Greek mythology like most of them are. You're not from anything, really…"  
The boy's eyes widened once what she said sunk in. "Let me get this straight," he said. The minute he spoke, she recognized his voice to be the one of the djinni. So did that mean those strange creatures were djinn? "I don't appear human to you?"

She started to nod. "Er, kind of. It's my instinctive reaction to check to see what someone really looks like. I can look multiple times if I want to, but I only really look that first time. So right now I'm seeing you as human."

"Do you know both of your parents?" the djinni slowly asked.

She nodded. "Yes. Both of them. Joe Acker and Claire Acker." Strangely enough, she didn't feel nervous about telling the djinni before her about her family.

He looked troubled at her response. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah. I look like both of them."  
A boy with glasses walked over. "You can see things that normal people can't?" he asked her.

She once again nodded. "It's always been like that…I'm not crazy. I swear I'm not, even though people think that I'm going to end up in a psychiatric hospital someday. People don't believe me when I say that I see a person with only a single eye in the center of their forehead. People don't believe me when I say that the dog next to a person's legs is some sort of creature never seen before."

The boy pushed his glasses up. "You're not crazy."

"I'm not?" she asked in disbelief. People had told her that before, but it was those same people who would either make fun of her later or say it in a way that obviously showed they thought otherwise. Yet this boy seemed to mean it.

"You can see through the Mist, even though you're a mortal."  
"Mortal? You say that like you're not, but you look human to me," she replied.

"I'm a demigod."  
"Gods don't exist-" the djinni began to protest, but the boy raised his hand and the djinni fell silent.

"Demigod," she repeated. "So then who is your godly parent?"

"My mother is Athena."

She started to get excited. When she was younger, she had watched a show with Athena in it. The anime had been called Saint Seiya, and she had loved it. But as she thought about it, she doubted that the boy's mother was the same Athena she was thinking of.

Was the entire group assembled in the pavilion the explanation she had been looking for? She picked up her belongings and slung her backpack over her shoulder. "My name is May. May Acker," she told them with a smile. "Please tell me everything you know about spirits and demigods!"

 **A/N Hey there, all you wonderful Souls! No big news for this chapter. I just wanted to restate all of my accounts, and go into a little more detail about them to get you to check them out (if you haven't already).**

 **Quotev: TheHopefulSoul**

 **I don't have any quizzes up relating to this story, but if you've always wondered which god's chosen you would be, you can check out my one quiz. It has the gods from my story _A Hero's Destiny._ It does contain spoilers, so you've been warned. **

**DeviantArt: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **I have the occasional picture of a character up, but for now I have a little behind the scenes type of thing for my various fanfictions, some traditional art of two of my Minecraftian gods, and one Bartimaeus Sequence fanart. If you want to find out what that fanart is, you'll have to check it out for yourself!**

 **Tumblr: soulerrorarwitch, ask-telos-of-minecraftia, ask-geist-of-germany**

 **soulerrorarwitch is my main blog. I usually reblog fandom-related posts (typically about Bartimaeus). But I do have some content of my own, such as my art, a headcanon about the mechanics of the Other Place, and a theory about Bartimaeus' form on the seventh plane.**

 **ask-telos-of-minecraftia is an RP/Ask blog for Télos, god of gold, in _A Hero's Destiny_ (mentioned earlier). **

**Ask-geist-of-germany is an RP/Ask blog for Geist. The one in this story. Don't worry, I don't post answers containing spoilers. But if you have, for instance, been wondering what his favorite color is, you know where to ask.**

 **Well, have a great day/night! See you in Chapter 5~**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter 5:**

 **Tension**

As the group sat in an awkward silence, May fished through her backpack for her glass bottle of milk. She tried to ignore the stares when she finally retrieved it. _Calm down,_ she thought as she opened the bottle. The cool liquid was a welcome relief from the anxiety she was suddenly experiencing.

The other people there were all older than her, save for the girl with the Uggs. She had never liked Uggs. If the need to run arose, Uggs would be very inconvenient choice of footwear. Then there was the guy with the facial hair. She had never been a fan of that either. The older teenager with the muscles looked terrifying, as if he was some bodyguard for hire. The boy with glasses was like the Villain in Glasses, pushing them in the exact same way. She wondered if he had seen Log Horizon before and was intentionally copying the main character. The goth girl was the type of girl her mother had advised her to avoid – goth girls were rebel girls, and rebel girls ended up doing drugs. And then there was the djinni with scarlet hair, the one who both terrified her and amazed her at the same time.

God, she needed to focus.

But focusing just made the group before her seem a hundred times more daunting. May awkwardly sat down at the end of the table, muttering a quiet, "Excuse me," as she sat next to the girl with the Uggs. Her early enthusiasm had faded. Now she was left with the thought, _Fudge. What on Earth did I just get myself into?_

No one was talking. The tense silence was incredibly unwelcome, and May was partially tempted to start blabbering about how nice the weather was. Then she realized that it was raining, and that most people don't appreciate the rain in the same way she did.

Glances were given between different people (did djinn count as people?), telling May who was closest with who. Muscles and Glasses looked at each other, Facial Hair trying to join in only to be ignored. The djinni and Goth gave each other far longer glances. Longer enough glances that May believed that if they were telepathic, they could have had a very detailed discussion on some random topic.

But then the girl with Uggs just sat there looking confused. Confused and sad.

Maybe the girl was the best place to start?

"Hi," May began, turning to her with what she hoped was a friendly smile. "I'm May Acker. Wait, I told you that already. What's your name?" Her question was one that she had been asking people when they first met since she was little. It was a good way to start a conversation then, and she hoped that it would be now.

"Abby Bell," the girl replied. She gratefully returned the smile. May felt like this was a major victory in her short, thirteen-year-long life. If she looked past the makeup and Uggs, Abby could very possibly be best friend material.

One person down, five more to go. She could totally do this. Definitely. May took a deep breath. "I think that I probably interrupted some major explanation earlier, but could we restart?" She should have expected the stares. "Like maybe with an introduction? You know, say your name and…a food that you like? Maybe explain what you are?" Now that the attention was on her, she forced to begin. "Like this. I'm May Acker, and my favorite food is milk. Er, drink. Beverage. Close enough. I'm a purely human girl. And I can see things others can't. Oh, I'm thirteen years old!"

To her relief, Facial Hair continued the conversation. He cast a nervous glance at the two boys next to him before speaking. "I-I'm L-Leif Oak-Oaksfield." She flashed him what she hoped was a reassuring grin in an attempt to boost his confidence. "I li-like blueberries. And I-I'm a s-satyr that s-seeks demigods. I'm a Se-Searcher at C-Camp H-Half-Blood."

There was something ironic about a satyr being named after a plant. Maybe that was intentional. She would have to ask Leif about that later-She paused her train of thought. May still didn't know if this was just a quick meeting before she never saw them again, or if she was going to be a part of their group.

It was also ironic that the people who were the less intimidating speaking first. Abby was the next one to speak, quickly looking at the goth girl. "I'm Abby Bell. My favorite food is crepes…My father…My dad was killed by a cyclops…" Fresh tears began to stream down her face, and the goth girl seemed unsure about offering Abby a hug for comfort. "I never knew my mom."

May was surprised to see the looks on both Muscles and Glasses' faces soften upon hearing her speak. She hadn't expected them to react in that way. She also hadn't expected Abby to be an orphan now.

She did what she felt Abby needed the most – she gave her a hug. She barely knew Abby. But that didn't matter. Abby needed a reassurance that things were going to be okay, even if they were far from it.

Abby finally pulled away, desperately trying to dry her tear-stained cheeks. "Thank you," she whispered.

"You're welcome," May said with a smile. She almost said, "That's what friends are for," but that was being too hopeful. Oh God, she wanted to be hopeful. She wanted her, Abby, and Leif to be like the Golden Trio. She wanted to always be a team, always wanted to be able to rely on them if times got tough.

She looked at the remaining four people. One would have to speak up eventually. That person proved to be the second most intimidating (the djinni was the first) – Muscles. "My name is Hunter Cline." May was surprised to hear that his voice seemed almost gentle. He spoke quietly, and when she paid closer attention to him, she realized that he seemed very relaxed. Not tense and prepared to punch someone in the face. "My favorite food is steak. I'm the son of Ares, god of war. I don't know my mother by blood, but I do have two who I consider to be my mothers even more than her. Before Leif found me, I was living in Provincetown, Massachusetts."

It was at this moment that Hunter stared at the four across from him, as if he was challenging them to speak up about his parents.

Glasses quickly took over the conversation. "My name is Allen Ellis." Cue him pushing up his glasses. If he didn't watch Log Horizon, she would be shocked. "My favorite food is escargot. I'm the son of Athena, and before Leif found me I was going to a Catholic school in upstate New York. Hunter and I have been dating for the past three years."

There was a tense silence, and like his boyfriend, Allen challenged everyone with a glare. Suddenly, Goth spoke. "It must cost a fortune when you two go out to eat."

Shoulders relaxed, and smiles appeared on their faces. Maybe Goth wasn't so bad after all?

"I'm Geist," the djinni suddenly introduced himself. "It's short for Geist of Germany. I'm a spirit. Specifically, a djinni. No, we don't _usually_ come out of bottles and grant wishes. Although I think the majority of us have had brief stints in similar objects…" He shuddered at the memory. "Spirits like us are summoned by magicians through complex rituals. Most magicians are assholes and greedy bastards-"

" _Geist,_ " Goth threateningly said. "my sister is listening to you right now, so stop the fucking swearing."

May snickered.

"Sure thing, Ms. Profanity." That gained the djinni a lighthearted punch to the shoulder. "As I was saying, most are like that. But my current summoner, though she can be annoying at times, doesn't fall into that category. She's also sitting right next to me."

The girl sitting next to him was the goth one. For some reason, to May's eyes, she seemed almost scared. But of what? All that she was doing was telling them who she was. Geist had even done a bit by saying that she was his summoner.

"My name is Riley Bell," she began. "Abby is my adoptive sister, and though my father and my sister aren't related to me by blood, I still would fight an army to protect them." She looked at Geist nervously. The djinni gave her a reassuring smile, and May noticed that his hand squeezed Riley's. "My dad found me on the doorstep of his house, with a little note tucked into my blankets saying that my birth father had died while serving overseas, and that my mother had died during childbirth."

Riley's voice caught in her throat. Geist once again squeezed her hand, as if the truth was that terrifying. May was both curious and worried at the same time. What could Riley be getting to?

"My mother didn't die during childbirth. A foliot – that's a rank of spirit – informed me that her real name was Seishen. Just Seishen. She had died several years later, around when I would be three years old."

"Riley, you never told me-" Abby began. But her sister raised a hand to cut her off. The younger Bell sister obliged.

"Look, Abby, I'm sorry. I'm really sorry that you had to find out this way, and that I couldn't wait until you were older to tell you the truth. I was always planning on doing it, I swear…" Riley took a deep breath. "Seishen was a djinni. Just like Geist is. I'm only half human, Abby."

Her sister simply stared at her, shock written all across her face.

 **A/N Hey there, all you wonderful Souls! This isn't my usual type of Author's Note. In fact, this is from several months ago, when the first version of this chapter came out. Because it came out on my one year fanfiction-anniversary, I thanked a lot of people. I want to keep this up because it means so much to me.**

 **If you don't want to read what follows, I'll tell you this now: Have a great day/night, and see you in Chapter 6 when it comes out!**

* * *

 **I'll jump back a year for a quick moment. Imagine I, a writer intent on the goal of embracing my beloved fandoms through writing, having been writing fanfictions since I discovered a link to this wonderful website on my favorite author, Johnathon Stroud. Now that I have become a dedicated fanfiction writer, I truly admire him for that – but that is a story for another day.**

 **A year ago, I decided to create account simply to review. My first fanfictions, in my opinion then and now, had been trash. The character that was the center of almost all of them was constantly out of character. The ideas were good though, and they were _different._ That same thought of writing unique plots, along with a picture I found on the world wide web, made me bingewrite and publish _Truth: The One Thing Often Overlooked._**

 **I was shocked to find that people liked it. It was an amazing feeling, one that I had never truly experienced before. And now I have officially become obsessed with this wonderful world of fanfiction.**

 **So yes, this is my fanversary. I've been a part of this website for one year, and I've loved every minute of it.**

 **There's a lot of people that I want to thank. First off, I want to thank every single writer on here. Your ideas inspired mine. And even if I haven't read your fanfiction, I'm grateful that other people treasure their fandoms enough to write stories about them. Next, I wanted to thank all of the readers. Without you, I would simply be posting my stories online. Your inputs help me a lot, even though you don't know it.**

 **Now here's the part about the specific users.**

 **Thank you Zelda48, curligurl0896, ThreeKittiesDancing, Tyto11, FlareHeart404, ThatRandomMooshroom, GalaxyFangirl, Darksorceress16, Animefox46, NoxPerpetuo, BlockDebockle, EnhancedHD, Fluffy543, Void of Shining Darkness, Platypotato, DarkWolf133, Mr. Villager, Watcher321, HiDeKiThEhIdDeN, and DiamondMiner37 for reviewing my stories.**

 **Thank you iamsolarflare for being the first person to review my first story on here. Without it, I might have never gotten this far.**

 **Thank you LarkSweetsong for being my first friend on Fanfiction – I'm sorry for the lack of PMs lately. I really want to catch up on your story and review it first.**

 **Thank you FlufferNutter Sandwich for the creation of Phoenix and Carly. Both of them have really impacted the course of _A Hero's Destiny_. Like with RavenstarIsAwesome, I haven't forgotten you.**

 **Thank you Dannyjamesjannydames for the creation of Aleks. He has impacted _A Hero's Destiny_ and its sequel so much, and my writing in general that I can't begin to describe how thankful I am. Like with FlufferNutter Sandwich and RavenstarIsAwesome, I'll never forget you.**

 **Thank you RavenstarIsAwesome for being an awesome reviewer and friend. Though I haven't heard from you in ages, I still remember you.**

 **Thank you DawnTotadile for being a great friend, and for all of our fandom-based banter.**

 **Thank you The scribe of the 4th brother for sticking with _A Hero's Destiny_ and a bunch of my other stories. You always come up with great dares, and I'm glad to call you friend.**

 **Thank you Raiden the OC. Or, as I prefer to say, Random the OC. You were the first person who ever asked me to be friends; now looking back, I realize that – even if away from the screen – I'm the one who asks first. You've unlocked my love of roleplay. You're one of my most consistent readers. Like The scribe of the 4th brother, you have been granted the ability of creating great dares and questions.**

 **Finally, thank you CsMelody. You were the first person who ever understood my Bartimaeus rants. You've been a great friend in the time we've known each other, and I love our discussions. There's been countless times you've been awesome towards me – like reading _Entwined Worlds_ without reading _Heroes of Olympus._**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer-I do not own the Bartimaeus Sequence, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, or any related works by their respective creators. I do own my OCs, and the plot of this story - so please, no copying.**

 **Please read, review, and enjoy!**

 **Chapter Six**

Everything had become eerily quiet in the room, and the young girl reluctantly admitted to herself that fact terrified her. She was not one to give into fear. At the age of only ten, she was sure of this fact. It was something she had come to realize what seemed like so long ago when she first ventured into the library that would become a second home to her.

Seeing the pentacle before her hurt. It made her heart ache for times that were forever locked in the past, and for the reassuring and comforting presence of her teacher. Even as the spirit chose a guise, the sadness remained.

The spirit chose a human guise. Which was unsurprising; she had been instructed to draw the pentacle in dimensions that would force the spirit to do exactly that.

Two miniature balls of fire stared into her very soul, ready to bore a hole through her at a moment's notice. Wild and unkempt hair the color of the darkest night went down the waist of the man. His teeth were shockingly sharp, each coming to a tiny point.

"Who dares to summon me?"

The glass in the closed door shook from the sheer volume of the spirit's deep and masculine voice. A shiver raced up and down her spine as she looked up at him. She was a brave girl, but he was a terrifying being.

"I do," she quietly replied. A gentle breeze replaced the relentless winds that had begun when he appeared; this was her chance. The courage she had felt during his lesson returned in full force. She was prepared for this encounter and could achieve her goal.

But then he spoke.

The voice was quieter than before, but it still was as cold as ice. "You are a child." Oddly enough, the voice had gained a curious tone. He didn't sound suspicious or angry. He sounded as if he was trying to conceal how her presence completely confused him.

"I'm ten," she corrected him. It was early on in their relationship. This was a fundamental fact that she needed to get across as soon as possible. She was ten years old, and that meant she was prepared for whatever awaited her.

The eyes of fire scanned the room. "Where is your master?"

She bit her lip, but the tears she had been struggling to hold back still fell. The spirit offered her no solace. It was understandable. They had never met before. Why was he supposed to care about her grief?

"What is your charge?"

She wiped her tears away with her sleeve, though she doubted they would stop anytime soon. The frequent crying was something she had still to get used to. "I charge you to let me become your friend."

A laugh reached her ears. Cold and hollow, it was the laugh of someone who had given up on the world long ago. "You amuse me greatly, human. Friendship is a foolish notion, especially between humans and spirits."

This wasn't right! He was supposed to agree like Chris had said he would, and then they would go on lots of adventures together. He wasn't supposed to make her feel as if everything she had worked so hard to achieve was for nothing!

"Friendship is real!" she protested. Another laugh left the spirit as she tried to convince him otherwise. "My teacher, Chris Dixon, showed me that! We were friends, and he was friends with other spirits!"

Her exclamation momentarily silenced the spirit. "How did your master die, then? Was he killed by one of his _friends?_ "

"He died in his sleep. He was old; Daddy says that's not unusual."

The spirit was unable to prevent the disbelief from seeping into his voice. It was written clear as day across his face; her explanation surprised him. "You are a magician but you know your father? That should go against your rules."

"I'm not the average magician," she replied. "And that's why I'm going to become your friend, Geist of Germany!"

He crossed his arms. He obviously didn't believe that was a possibility, but she was going to show him wrong. "If you were truly going to become my friend, you would tell me your name." The spirit paused. "But you would not dare because then you would lose the majority of the leverage you have over me-"  
"My name is Riley Bell," she cut him off. Shock flickered across his face, quickly followed by disbelief and suspicion. "Yes, that's my birth name. I would have told you it ages ago if you didn't keep interrupting me!"

He gaped at her. The dangerous and frightening being was gone; it had been replaced by a rather confused spirit. "You-You told me your name."  
She nodded. "Friends give each other their names," the young magician informed him, though she didn't share the traits of most magicians. "I'm going to become your friend, Geist!"

He didn't offer a response.

 **A/N Hello, wonderful Souls~ Do I find pleasure in confusing spirits? Naturally! I'm sorry for the lack of updates. I haven't had much inspiration to write this fanfiction, and life's gotten busy. But now we're finally getting somewhere! =D**

 **Here's the accounts, as always:**

 **Quotev: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **DeviantArt: SoulErrorArwitch**

 **Tumblr: soulerrorarwitch, ask-telos-of-minecraftia, ask-geist-of-germany, ask-aph-minecraftia, ask-the-recurve-fangirl**

 **See that last one? That one is for May. You should drop by and check both her and Geist's out! I have a fun thing happening on his blog, so you definitely want to see what that is.**

 **Also, I have a message from my Tumblr that I thought should be shared with all of my readers. ^_^**

* * *

 **Seeing that my dashboard is being filled with _Fullmetal Alchemist_ posts because you're not supposed to forget October 3 (it's a FMA thing), I've decided that it is time to remind all of the Bartimates/Summoners/Bartimaens/whatever you awesome fans call yourselves that our fandom day is quickly approaching. **

**That day, fellow Bart-lovers, is October 30th.**

 **Our fandom day is relatively new; I chose it and other fans agreed on it only just back in June. The original reason for it to be on that day was because Bartimaeus (according to the official timeline on Jonathan Stroud's website) was first summoned in 3010 B.C and because it's the day before Halloween. Bartimaeus and Halloween just seem to go hand in hand. Other people added their thoughts on the date. The Glass Palace was destroyed a month later (according to some internet searching) and the events of** _ **Ptolemy's Gate**_ **might take place in October.**

 **So write some fics and share them with the internet. Draw and upload fanart of your favorite characters. Have a special event on your ask blog. Search the Bartimaeus tag and reblog posts there. Convert your friends to the fandom.**

 **All in all, show the world your love of Bartimaeus of Uruk  
Rekhyt of Alexandria  
Necho of Jerusalem  
Sakhr al-Jinni of Al-Arish  
N'gorso the Mighty  
Wakonda of the Algonquin  
Serpent of Silver Plumes  
Wolf-Jawed Guardian  
Nectanebo  
Asmodeus**

 **and all of his entertaining escapades and tales of glory (and the occasional failure, but don't tell him I said that).**

* * *

 **Have a great day/night! See you in Chapter 7~**


	8. Please Read

**Hello, wonderful souls. I haven't written many chapters for my fanfictions lately, so I think the majority of you, if you're a consistent reader, have seen this coming. I've decided that it's best for me to put all of my fanfictions on an indefinite hiatus. I'm not sure when I'll continue writing them – if I ever do – but it's a lot easier to focus on the other more important things In my life if I don't have to worry about them. I want to thank everyone who has supported my fanfictions by reading them, reviewing them, favoriting them and/or following them. It means a lot to me, and it always will.**

 **If you ever want to contact me, you can shoot me a PM here or message me at my Tumblr account (soul-of-positivity). I appreciate all that you have done for me, and I've enjoyed every moment that's led up to this point in time. It's because of readers like you that I've grown more confident and more skilled as a writer, and I'll always treasure the connections that I've made during my time here.**

 **Once again, thank you all for being so supportive and kind!**


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